Toms Tips About Bottom Maintenance When Aground

By Tom Neale, 12/9/2010

1. Some people in areas of extreme tides use them to save haulout bills for sailboats and other keel boats.

2. It’s always better to just go to a yard. If anything goes wrong and the boat topples, it could severely damage the boat and it could kill whoever is working underneath it. Obviously, I don’t recommend this.

3. If you must do this, pick your place and bottom carefully to avoid debris, too much slope, and damaging wake from passing boats.

4. Close all seacocks, portholes and other places where water could enter the boat if something goes wrong.

5. Sometimes if a boat does settle over on its side, the suction of mud will keep it there as the tide comes in. A sandy bottom is better for this.

6. Many tie their boat to a tree or lean it against a seawall or piling to keep it on a relatively even keel. And many will just clean down a few feet under the waterline to avoid getting under the boat. Also, there is usually less growth farther down. But this is always a precarious arrangement at best.

Boating and water sports involve risk. Any comments herein should be followed at your own risk. You assume all responsibility for risk or injury to yourself or others. Any person or entity that uses this information in any way, as a condition of that use, agrees to waive and does waive and also hold authors harmless from any and all claims which may arise from or be related to that use.